Leon Draisaitl takes a shot at the Calgary Flames for targeting him during the playoffs

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C. Ritchie
August 30, 2022 (8:55)

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In the first round of the NHL playoffs, Leon Draisaitl suffered a high ankle sprain that hindered him the rest of the way. He and the Edmonton Oilers managed to get to the Western Conference final where they lost to eventual Stanley Cup Champions, the Colorado Avalanche. But it's what happened during the second round against the rival Calgary Flames that he remembers the most from the Oilers' recent playoff run.

It was pretty noticeable to everyone watching that Draisaitl's ankle was hindering him during the second round. He wasn't fully healed and if it was the regular season, he probably wouldn't be in the lineup. As most teams do, the Calgary Flames targeted Draisaitl and tried to slow him down. Every chance they had, the Flames made sure to give Draisaitl a whack in the ankle. Draisaitl spoke about this recently on Jeff Marek and Elliotte Friedman's «32 Thoughts» podcast.

I was laughing when we played the Flames and some of them started hacking my left ankle and I was like «I don't know what you are doing here»

It seems Draisaitl wasn't fazed by the extra targeting and it showed as the Oilers finished the Flames off in 5 games. He was dominant in that series with 17 points.